The princess’ offer was heartwarming and sincerely appreciated. Ben decided to accompany her to the door since his mage didn’t seem to be around. Their brief talk left him pensive for a moment; her history was a mystery he was keen on knowing, only to be reminded that he had ulterior motives for knowing so. He had gained valuable information on the school’s history that would hopefully take a step forward for his investigation, but it felt artificial in the face of his earlier promise to keep the peace. Of course, despite his father’s wishes, he fully planned on keeping said information for his own purposes, but he supposed he would simply cross that bridge when it came to it.
Just as he was about to bid Princess Ryner farewell, some movement not too far off caught his attention. It was a peculiar sight of what looked like a student carrying another on his back, but he had noticed they were coming towards this dorm. The young man was a noble blond wearing Noilan colors, the girl on his back pale with snow white hair. He seemed to take it in stride, but Ben was a little more concerned with the young lady. She looked like she was talking into his shoulder, the occasional giggle heard, but she seemed very comfortable with him with her arms embracing the young man.
There was an odd feeling in his stomach. Dread? No, that couldn’t be. There was nothing particularly wrong with what they were doing, moreso after he noticed something tied around her foot, but something about the pair didn’t strike him as entirely wholesome. As to why, he wasn’t sure.
“I believe the Revel truly is a night to let go,” He commented, unsure of what to make of the pair.
Ryner followed Ben's gaze and took a moment to watch the approaching pair. She smiled, far more affectionate than she meant but like Ben said the Revel was a night to let go.
"And I'm glad it is. I believe Aaron's needed a relaxing night since the semester started. It's good to see him getting closer to someone. Do you know how to use these camera phones that came out recently? His mother would love a picture of him and Lilie like this."It took a little longer than it should have, humouring Lilie’s tipsy comments with the occasional laugh or reply as they made their way to her dorm, for Aaron to notice the two vampires standing in front of the Eve dorm, and another second longer to realize
who they were. Countess Mariette was nowhere to be seen, but there was a tall vampire with dirty-blond hair, accompanied by none other than Princess Ryner.
How did he always manage to stumble across her in his less-than-regal moments?
Aaron had no earthly idea who the other vampire was or why the two of them were outside the Eve dorm, but he couldn’t very well just walk past them, so he threw on his best available version of a polite smile and quickly set Lilie down when he approached. He had to give the Princess a bit shallower of a bow than he preferred, hindered by the arm he kept around Lilie’s waist to stabilize her, but the attempt was there.
“Happy Revel, Your Highness!” he greeted, doing his best to sound less embarrassed than he was,
“This is a surprise!” "Happy Revel, Aaron. I see Lilie and you have been enjoying the festivities." Ryner chuckled but she turned to Benjamin.
"Benjamin, this is Aaron, the mage I was talking about earlier, and your partner for the foreseeable future, Lilie Dionne. Aaron, Count Benjamin will be taking the Countess' place as the Eve's representative to the school."Lilie swayed in place, happily using Aaron as support as he put her down. The princess was there to see them! That was so nice of her!
"Happy Revel, Princess!" She waved happily, only noticing the stranger after the princess introduced them. It took her a second to understand that this was her partner. Lilie's smile fell as she looked at him, then looked at the princess, then at Aaron. She clumsily hobbled closer to Aaron, steadied only by his grip as she leaned closer to him.
"Did she just say that's my partner, 'cause I think I had too many coolers," She (tried to) whisper, not realizing her voice was louder than anticipated.
As he listened to the Princess - and did his best to ignore the other vampire taking pictures of them for some reason - Aaron couldn’t help but latch on to a few points: that the Princess had been talking about him, that Lilie had a new partner somehow, and that House Eve was an even bigger mess than he originally thought. By his count, this was… what, four masters now that Lilie had gone through? He’d thought the first three a fluke of Eve incompetence, happening all at once and all, but he thought for sure that this had already been put behind her.
It seemed Lilie was just as confused as he was, as she tried and failed to discreetly ask him what was going on and unintentionally only added to Aaron’s embarrassment.
“No, no, you heard right,” he answered somewhat louder, looking sheepishly between Lilie and the vampires before turning his attention to Count Benjamin.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Count Benjamin,” he greeted properly, offering the Count another shallow bow and doing his best to salvage the situation.
Ben was all too proud to take the photos, the giddy excitement at being slightly more technologically proficient than before with his new phone taking precedent. His intentions were obvious, taking more than what the princess had asked for solely for his own amusement. He offered the pair a slight nod, offering the phone to Her Highness as he was introduced. That said, there was no hiding his surprise when the young lady was the one and same that Ryner had spoke of. He wasn’t expecting a number of things with his new partner; maybe he had been too optimistic. Ryner hadn’t mentioned anything about the girl’s appearance, a small frown on his face as he looked her over. Aside from the obvious intoxication, her pale features and bright eyes seemed extraordinarily so, her white hair striking him as an odd choice of dye.
Still, he remembered his place as he offered the pair a small smile.
“The pleasure is all mine, Mr. Starag,” He returned Aaron’s greeting kindly before deciding to confirm Lilie’s assumption.
“You heard right, Miss Dionne.”Lilie's jaw dropped, though she immediately burst out laughing, covering her mouth as she shook her head. No way was she having
another partner! This had to be some kind of joke! It was too funny to her as she barely held herself together, though she nearly fell over as she unintentionally put weight on her injured foot.
"Did Mariette run away, too?" She asked, letting out a sigh as she fully leaned on Aaron.
"I guess I'm not good enough to say goodbye to."That wasn’t the reaction Ben was expecting. It was a little disappointing, but to the mage’s credit, he supposed that being told that there was yet another change in representative may have dampened her spirits. He decided instead to focus on the pair, clasping his hands together as he gestured to the dorm.
“Before exchanging pleasantries, why don’t we step inside to better talk?” Ben gestured towards Lilie’s foot.
“I can’t imagine you’re too comfortable like that.”"Oh, Lilie." Ryner hugged her briefly.
"Unfortunately, family matters called her away. I'm sorry it was so sudden but the gravity of the situation demanded it be handled immediately. She mentioned she regretted being as distant as she was but a death in a vampire family tends to wear them thin. Vampires aren't well known for handling their emotions in the healthiest ways." "As for now, I must return to my official duties. Mostly keeping controlled substances," she gave Aaron a look before continuing,
"from coming across my campus but we can't be everywhere at once. Aaron, would you kindly give Count Benjamin my personal number. Someone would absolutely love to have those pictures and it's no secret I can barely manage to call someone, let alone get a picture off of one. You all have a wonderful rest of your Revel. Good morning." She offered a slight bow and made her way off, humming contently.
The awkward tension in the air was palpable as Lilie threw what little politesse she knew to the wind and confounded her new partner, and Aaron was particularly sensitive to it, finding himself thinking of all the other situations he’d rather be in than this one until he was addressed. He didn’t miss the
look the Princess gave him - he got that look enough as a hyper child running amok in the castle to know what it meant - and responded with a bit of a nervous grin, reminiscent of a child hiding something he’d broken. He offered a quiet chuckle as she teased him, nodding his assent to her order and bowing as she left, watching her go for a moment before turning somewhat more stiffly back to Lilie’s new partner.
“Well, Count Benjamin, I’ll give you Her Highness’ number and then I’ll be out of your way then,” he offered politely, glancing between the Count and Lilie in a way he hoped would be encouraging to the latter.
Ben gave the princess a formal bow, straightening up to face the two mages. That wasn’t the best of first impressions as a duo, but he supposed he had been a little too optimistic. Feeling that his new partner wasn’t too keen on interacting with him alone, he hesitated as Aaron decided to excuse himself.
“Won’t you come in?” Ben offered, gesturing to the dorm.
“I’m sure Miss Dionne won’t want to end the date like this.”Aaron’s breath caught in his throat at the word
date, the mage coughing before immediately collecting himself.
“Oh, no, not a date I assure you, I— we just—” he had to stop to clear his throat before more blathering nonsense came out. Making himself take a breath, he quickly glanced at his watch. 6am was mere minutes away, and Varis thought every time came five minutes early, but he couldn’t very well refuse the Count’s offer, especially with the task assigned to him by the Princess yet to be done. Continuing more calmly, he abandoned his former rambling, sliding his sleeve back over his watch.
“Of course, Count Benjamin. I’d be happy to.”Lilie blinked at Aaron slowly, a small smile creeping up in her face as she tried not to laugh.
"Aww, I thought it was a date!" She joked, though she playfully nudged him.
"Guess I can see why he'd think that."She looked at the vampire for a second, more than a few thoughts swimming through her head, but none she could really focus on. Princess Ryner was comforting, but she felt like she shouldn't have expected anything better at this point. Oh well. She'd just have to see how long this one lasted.
"This is my best friend here, Aaron," She reintroduced him to the count, lightly bowing her head as she made an attempt to hop towards the door.
"We're just gonna, uh, get the first aid kit." She told Benjamin.
How awkward, it seemed his mage was avoiding him. Or perhaps he was looking too much into things. But her body language and reintroduction of Aaron made Ben believe that maybe her current intoxication was to blame. At least, he hoped so.
Once the trio entered the dorm, Ben made sure to close the door as he contemplated on what to say. Lilie seemed unamused by his arrival, almost cynical. It did wonders to shatter the image he had in his head, but he supposed that was his own fault. High expectations lead to massive disappointments, but he wasn’t about to go quietly, either. Instead, he decided to play it off, figuring that he would instead get to know the pair. Seeing an actual Noilan mage outside of the castle was a delight, at least.
“So...Miss Dionne, from what family do you hail?” He asked her.
Having taken a seat on the couch, Lilie wasn't expecting the vampire to stick around, but after she had told Aaron where the medical supplies were, he stayed. And wanted to talk to her. She raised an eyebrow at his weirdly-worded question, scratching her cheek.
"From...my family?" She replied slowly with a shrug.
"Uh...Dionne? Like my last name? That's my family." She shrugged at him.
Her response was amusing; he supposed he should have been clearer.
“What family did yours serve before coming to the academy?” He politely clarified.
Lilie slowly shook her head at Ben. Weirdo.
"No one," She said.
"I'm human. Or I thought I was, anyway, so I guess not. First mage in Hillsdale in...thirty years, I think they said. Something like that."Aaron physically cringed in the other room when he heard the question come up, and returned with the first aid kit just in time to (hopefully) salvage it.
“And how fortunate you are,” he interjected insistently, hoping Lilie would get the hint. He handed over the first aid kit and smiled, giving her a look.
“Not only are you the first mage in your family, but now you’re lucky enough to have the honour of serving House Eve.”"I guess," Lilie replied, more focused on her injured foot. Truthfully, she wasn't too honored by the
honor of
serving, but at least she didn't voice it. Her lack of enthusiasm was, however, clear on her face.
"We'll see how long it lasts."The look of surprise on his face was unintentional, but he had to admit it had been some time since he had been so flagrantly dismissed. And by a mage, no doubt. Ben tensed up slightly, his hand adjusting his collar as he cleared his throat. Perhaps she was testing him. She did have three other Eves and likely was unsure how he would treat her, so it was fair, if rude.
“For all intents and purposes, I will be the last Eve you serve,” He was a little too obvious with it, but he wanted to lay down the foundation sooner than later, and he wasn’t going to tolerate any further disrespect.
“That being said, if you are uneducated, then it falls on me to ensure that you are both caught up to speed and exemplifying all the traits of a noble’s mage. For example, I would ask that you veer on the modest side and avoid any flagarancies. Your hair in particular should be dyed back to its natural color.”Lilie slowly looked up from her foot to the Count, a little confused. Her mom didn't even let her dye her hair, what was he talking about? Her hand flew to her head as she tried to make sense of what he said, though after a few seconds, she let out a laugh.
"Oh, no, no, this is my natural hair color," She explained as she pulled a few strands out.
"I'm an albino. It's why I'm also super pale. Got really lucky with my eyes, though!"Tonight was just full of unpleasant surprises. This time, there was no hiding Ben’s shock, his eyes wide with the admission. The first thought that came to mind was that the House had been assigned a defective mage, and Princess Ryner was all but done with them. The girl would get eaten alive at any social event, any offers for her hand would be little more than pity or some kind of joke, and she seemed extremely cavalier about the entirety of the situation.
“Really,” Ben managed to utter a word, swallowing hard.
“How...unique.”An awkward silence followed, and as he had throughout the whole conversation, Aaron felt distinctly, extremely uncomfortable. He
had been invited in, yes, but he felt as if he were intruding on something very private - not to mention very
tense. He really wasn’t sure what to make of it; part of him wanted to try and salvage the conversation, and the other part wanted to slink out the window and never look back.
Checking his watch again and inwardly groaning that it was now a few minutes after six, he finally decided to speak up.
“Count Benjamin, I sincerely thank you for your hospitality, but my master is expecting me back and I see the two of you have much to discuss.” It was all so awkward it bordered on distracting Aaron from his train of thought, but he soldiered on nonetheless.
“If it pleases you, I can write Her Highness’ number down for you and leave you and Lilie alone.”Ben had nearly forgotten about the poor mage, suddenly feeling very embarrassed. There was no salvaging the first impression, nor did he think he could convince him to stay. Regretfully so, Ben would arguably make things worse by keeping Aaron around. He would have to apologize for putting him in such a situation.
“I’ll take you up on your suggestion, it seems that we have much to discuss,” He tried to be positive, but obviously the pair were at opposite ends and needed to lay out some groundwork.
“Come, I’ll walk you to the door.”Lilie tried not to pout, though she got serious as Aaron mentioned the word 'master' again. She stared down at her lap, wishing she could tell him to stay out of a selfish need for a buffer between her and the crazy-weirdo Eve, but if he really needed to go, she didn't want to get him in trouble.
She perked up considerably as she flashed a grin at Aaron.
"Thanks a lot for tonight!" She told him cheerfully.
"I'll make it up to you for ending it so early, I promise."Having to stop himself from heaving an audible sigh, Aaron was nonetheless enormously relieved. He offered a warm smile and a,
“Don’t worry, it was great,” to Lilie as he made to leave, pausing only to jot Princess Ryner’s number on a sheet from a nearby pad before joining the Count at the door.
He folded the paper in half, offering it to the Count.
“Thank you again, Count,” he said courteously, taking comfort in his old regal habits, though he did lower his voice to add,
“and please excuse Lilie, she’s… not quite in her right mind at the moment.”Ben took the paper gratefully, pointing it at Aaron for a moment.
“You have my thanks, Mr. Starag. I’m sorry we couldn’t talk more,” He apologized sincerely.
“Please, don’t let this deter you from visiting, you’re always welcome here.” At the topic of his mage, he grimaced lightly.
“As for Miss Dionne...I’ll have to handle that sooner than later.” The swifter, the better in his opinion, but it was best not to make Aaron more uncomfortable than he probably already was.
Aaron nodded his thanks, a little surprised at the Count’s hospitality. His comment about Lilie was daunting, a string of bad scenarios playing through Aaron’s head before he forced them away. The Princess seemed fond of the Count, and she never would have taken to him if she had any inkling he might mistreat his mages. Then again, she
was friends with Varis… but Aaron supposed that wasn’t quite the same.
“Indeed,” he replied absently, glancing down at his hands before offering the Count a proper bow before leaving.
“Good morning, Count Benjamin.” “And to you as well,” Ben replied in kind, closing the door gently before quietly pressing his forehead against it, bemoaning that disaster of an introduction.
